Murder acquittal: Stan Reiz QC secures acquittal following a trial lasting in excess of 3 months at the new ‘supercourt’ sitting in Loughborough

Nine defendants were accused of travelling to Leamington Spa from Birmingham on the 28th May 2020, to seek revenge for an assault on one of the defendants the day before. The prosecution case was that they travelled in furtherance of a conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm and upon arriving in Leamington, murdered a man by stabbing him and beating him with a pole like object. B accepted driving others to and from Leamington. She received text messages earlier in the day from her boyfriend and co-defendant which referred to a plan to use serious violence that night. B’s case was that she did not take the messages seriously.

After approximately 4 weeks of deliberations, the jury acquitted B of both murder and conspiracy to cause GBH; she was convicted of manslaughter. B’s ex-boyfriend was convicted of manslaughter and conspiracy to cause GBH. 3 others were convicted of murder and conspiracy. All are due to be sentenced on the 28th March.